In prior art numerical control systems, the operator's display panel typically includes an alpha-numeric character display to provide the operator with information contained in the control system memory. Such a display is provided by means of individual character display devices such as "Nixie" tube displays or light emitting diode displays, which can be made large enough and bright enough for easy viewing by the operator. The prior art has also utilized a cathode ray tube display which has the advantage of providing more data to the operator; however, it has a disadvantage in that normal character is too small for easy viewing by the operator.